Alina
The idea in join up is not to scare the horse but to drive the horse in the direction you want it to go. If you all of a sudden change into a very aggressive person that your horse has never seen, you are going to be counter productive.
You need to be calm and to slow down your actions.
Watch Monty do a number of join ups and make sure you remain as calm as can be. Perhaps a friend can help coach you through the process.
You also need to evaluate what your relationship is with your horse before you start the join up Does your horse come to you on its own or do you have to catch it to put a halter on? Is your horse nervous around new things or is he curious?

Cheers

Hi Alina / Denis
I've done one quite successful join up with Kara but tried again yesterday with similar results to you. My horse charged away at breakneck speed bucking and kicking. She also kicked a few times into the middle where I was standing.She eventually slowed down came into the middle and rolled in the sand. After standing up she came over and seemed to join up - following me around as before. It was all very confusing and a bit scarey for a newbie. She hadn't had much excersise for the previous week but i don't know if that had any influence? Any advice before i try it again!

Stephen
I think you are right about the horse not getting enough excise. It sounds like the horse was just feeling really good, particularly since it rolled. Next time put the horse in the round pen by himself and see if he does the something. If he does, then wait until he finished getting the beans out and calms down. Then you can go in the round pen catch him up and start your join up. When you go into the pen observe why the horse does. Does he come over to greet you immediately? If so does he follow you without a lead line? If he does, you have already achieved a join up. If not you can now proceed and have the attention of the horse.

Cheers

Thanks Denis. Also I haven't tried the Dually Halter yet and I'm not sure if the round pen is the right place - having watched Monty's video. Would the sand school be better, and should I wait until there aren't any other horses around?

Totally agree with Dennis here, Stephen. Your horse was feeling frisky and full of fun after too little work and perhaps too much good food. Dennis advice is spot on. Let her get the livliness out before you start working with her. Pre-empting Dennis response here but I would suggest the round pen is the best spot, and yes wait until there are no other horses around for these early training sessions. Other horses can be introduced later. Do try to buy yourself a dually halter as soon as possible as they are so important for young horses.

Stephen
Maggie's suggestion is very good. When I put my horse in th around pen the first thing he does is run around and starts bucking. He does this no matter how much work he has had. he is just feeling good. You want your horse to feel really good if you are working with them. A happy horses is easier to work with than one that is grumpy.

Cheers

Thanks to both of you. I have had a dually halter for about a month and had the horse for about 2 months. When i put it on her she trys to rub it on the side of the stable ( My dog does the same with her halti on the ground ) I will try it out soon in the round pen. She is 13 years old and very good but not used to the level of partnership I wish for her. Kara was used to a lot of exercise with her previous owner but my daughter is not so experienced so I have reduced her food, but it is high performance. The forum is a lifeline for people who want more than just the traditional answers.

Stephen
I assume you have reduced the horses food and not your daughters! Just kidding. You might want to downgrade the feed and give the horse orchard grass or other hay that is not as high in nutrients. Horse are grazing animals so if they they eat their food in a short period of time they can get bored or even anxious waiting for the next feed time. Lots of hay is better than a smaller amount of high performance feed. Also turning your horse out daily will also help in keeping him happy. If he is a lone horse with out other horses around giving him things to play with like balls or old rubber buckets will allow them to vent their energy.

Cheers

Of course i know that the idea of join-up is not to scare the horse! I don't think that in the roundpen i change into an agressive person. I think the relationship to my mare is good. When i let her run in the riding hall, and i go towards her, she comes to me and she also follows me.
It's right that she don't like new things like a aerosol can.

Sorry for my bad English, but i am a german 14 year old pupil...

Hi Alina,
We are sure you did not try to scare your horse. You would not be interested in Monty's way of training if that were true.
The issue explained is when a horse first gets in the round pen some horses have to let all the extra excitement out first, before you train.
Then the horse will listen to you better.
I have to do that with my 4 year old mare, she has a lot of energy.
You try that first, in the round pen, which is new for her and see if that helps, OK.
You must love your mare a lot to ask questions for her.
And never worry about your English, for a lot of us English is not our first language.
Ronda

One of the horses I am training is still doing the same thing. I don't have to look at her, doing almost nothing: just unclip and then she goes. But I see it as a a benefit. During the training she is very sensitive, minimal movements are enough to lead her.
Rudi

Alina
The idea of the horse running around in the round pen to get some of the energy out is a good idea. When I talk about being aggressive any change in your body language like snapping your eyes on the horse or squaring up to the horse will seem aggressive to the horse which is OK if the horse stays in control and does not go nuts. It is like stepping on the gas peddle to get the car going. A little too much energy and the car goes too fast and not enough it goes too slow or not at all. The more you practice with your more the better you will understand what makes her go. Also don't worry if it is not perfect the first couple of times. From what you have said your horse trusts you

Cheers

Hi Stephen - re your mare rubbing her dually on the stable. She is probably more used to a rope halter and therefore finds the dually a little heavier so she is trying to rub it off. I would give her a sharp tug with the lead rope on the side away from the stable when she does this plus wouldn't leave the dually on her in the stable. It is more for training so put it on her and then take her to the round pen for training and then remove it once she is back in the stable. Agree with Dennis - grass hay for her to nibble on so she has access to it longer and perhaps just a bit of chaff (half a small bucket of oaten/lucerne mix dampened with a cup of water) as a special treat in the evenings. Given she is 13 she should settle down. She is obviously missing her more rigorous exercise too so try to give her as much as possible prior to your daughter riding her.

Thanks Maggie - She gets a lot of hay as well but i was going to bulk up her hard feed with some speedy beet. She is on a low starch diet when we got her - how does chaff compare in this regard? I've only tried on the dually and then taken it off again until i can give it the time during daylight as she seems a little afraid of the dark and artifical lights.I think I'll take the advice about giving her some exercise before my daughter rides her as it's a bit of a change from the school ponies she is used to.

Stephen
If you have access to Nutrena SafeChoice feed, I would give her that instead. I don't work for Nutrena, I just know that I have had my 13 year old stallion on this feed as a supplement to his hay for four years and the feed does not make him hot and I know that he is getting the nutrition that he needs since you cannot count of all the different cuttings of hay to be as nutritious as a horse may need. If you can but it give it a try.

Cheers

Thanks Denis - I'll try to track it down in Ireland.
Looks like saturday is Dually Halter trial day!

Hi Dennis,
How much do you give per day? And how much hay?
Thanks,
Ronda

Ronda
He gets two flakes of alfalfa in the morning and two flakes in th evening.. Alfalfa may be too rich for some horses so you should use oat hay or timothy grass hay. The Safe Choice is usually give after his morning work, and it is about 4 pound or a large coffee can full. I also add Red Cell supplement for the iron. During heavy workouts like horse shows or a lot of trailering I will also give him the Safe Choice in the evening as well, but on those days he gets 3 pounds in the morning and three pounds in the evening. The nice thing is if the horse starts to get too much weight on you just eliminate the Safe Choice for a few weeks but continue the same amount of hay. The horse still feels he is getting enough food so they don't get grouchy

Cheeers

Now I got interested. I have tried today to send a way the horse I mentioned above. Putting me in front of her, unclipping her very slowly and sending her away with a slow and minimal motion: she went away slowly.
Rudi

Sorry for writing such late!
Next time I will let my horse let the extra exitement out.
And, yes i love my mare really much! =D

I can't make a Join-Up this time because the "Round-Pen"
is snowbounded and i don't want to make a Join-Up when it's snowy because i have fear that she could hurt.

I will tell you when i have made the next Join-Up!

Sorry for writing such late!
Next time I will let my horse let the extra exitement out.
And, yes i love my mare really much! =D

I can't make a Join-Up this time because the "Round-Pen"
is snowbounded and i don't want to make a Join-Up when it's snowy because i have fear that she could hurt.

I will tell you when i have made the next Join-Up!

Oh, no i added the comments two times! Sorry!
Do you think i should use the line at the Join-Up?
Because she reacts so sensible...

Hey Guys, I have just recently joined monty's uni - (my partner bought me it for valentines day!). I have been having big issues here in Australia with my 9yr old TB gelding. I think he has learnt that i don't know what i'm doing and has taken advantage of that as the months have passed. He has had quite a few 'wins' over me and now it's very difficult to get him to do anything i ask of him (even putting his halter on, i'll walk over to him when he's eating & he'll either walk away or keep eating so i cant put it on!). Any advice would be much appreciated :) - i'd absolutley love to get a join up with my boy soon - how long did it take all you guys? Am i looking at days/weeks or months? Thanks guys :)

hi libby i to didnt know alot but i watch montys lessons over and over and then go out with that under my belt i did join up with my 1year old after watching monty do it several times he now comes flying across the paddocks when i call no matter where he is horses are very clever i started with small wins and oscar has more respect for me everyday and the dually relly is an awsome piece of equipment that works montys lessons relly work and it is such a magical feeling when you and your horse come together there are some great people on here and great advice good luck look forward to hearing your progress julie

Libby, join up only takes a few minutes to achieve, the important part of a proper join up is the body language you use. Make sure that you understand Monty's equus language, like eye's on eye's and squaring up on the horse means go away, looking for all of the 4 signs from the horse to indicate the horse is ready to join up, going passive and taking a shoulder by on 45 degree angle invites the horse into you. When done properly join up is quick and easy and so is follow up. Take Julie's advise and watch the video's over and over again until you understand all of the process.
Kleinne